BPL Community Profile

Elliott Wolin
(ewolin) -
BPL Lifetime Member

My Locale

Hampton Roads, Virginia

About Me

I am a 61 year old PhD research physicist. With the kids gone we can occasionally afford to fly off to other parts of the country for backpacking and kayaking trips. I dream of going to Nepal, the Alps, and New Zealand, or back to Alaska.

All Forum Posts by Elliott Wolin

RE: Advice - Alcohol "Simmer" StoveSee my post on simmer rings
for Caldera Cone stoves.
I had little luck partially covering the Caldera Cone stove as the airflow became unstable and it eventually popped itself out.
But the ...

RE: Winter camping with snow sawOne thing I used to always take was a small homemade snow saw, about 18" long, like a small serrated sword with a wood handle. Didn't weigh much. With it I could cut medium-sized snow bl...

RE: Bear bag rope sourcesSpectra is also used by parachutists. A while back I searched the web a bit for round and flat Spectra, and found it significantly cheaper at a parachute supply place (don't remember where, bu...

RE: Most expensiveBought many years ago, a Mountainsmith Expedition fiberglass sled for winter camping and hauling kids around. Cost around $500 then, but that was in the late 1980's. It included two kid seats...

Giving better than receivingOnce four of us went on an overnight trip to a lean-to in the Blue Ridge Mountains in Virginia. It was 2-Jan and unseasonably warm, but the nights were around freezing. The lean-to is a few miles...

RE: Umbrellas, ponchos, and rain pants/jacketsThe following works great for me, and allows me to use both hiking poles and an umbrella.
If my pack is filled in the right way I can lay my open Golite umbrella on top of my pack with the shaft...

RE: Cookware for twoWe too seem to need a 2L (MSR Titan) pot. We even seem to need more than a 2L pot...usually we bring a MSR 0.85L Titan as well, the 2L for food, the latter for hot water, drinking and cleaning. Co...

Dose vs dwell time with ClO2You can use less Aqua Mira, drops or tablets, if you let it sit longer. E.g. I often put in half the dose if the water will sit all night. Note that exposure to sunlight and other factors can low...

All Reader Reviews by Elliott Wolin

Sierra Designs customer serviceA number of years ago I pulled out my SD Dome tent right before a camping trip (original model, very light 4-season 3-person tent for 1980, under 7 lbs) and found that the shock cords in the poles had...

Rollei 35 SEI purchased a 35LED right after it came out in the late 1970's. The first model had a faulty on/off switch and they replaced it for free. From that day on I had nothing but praise for the little...

Ultimate Hiker's Gear Guide -Andrew Skurka bookJust read it and strongly agree with previous reviews. Having also just read UL Backpacking Tips by Clelland, which advocates pushing to the limit of UL, I was pleased to see that Skurka disagreed wi...

The Ray-Way Tarp Book Essential This is a completely revised and greatly expanded version of Jardine's original Tarp Book. The first version was as much a tutorial and instruction manual on how to sew a Ray-Way tarp as a discuss...

Marmot MarmotThe coating on my Precip jacket started flaking off around the neck and shoulders (my wife's is fine, purchased the same time, used about the same amount which is not much).
Got an RA number, s...

Gregory Customer SupportI purchased a Gregory Snow Creek around 1981. It was one of the best packs available then (5 1/2 lbs). I added a lumbar support pad soon after, for no particularly good reason.
Fast forward to 201...

Therm-A-Rest Pro Lite 3We've been using the Prolite 3 short (13 oz, latest model 11 oz) for a few years now with great success on all sorts of surfaces from wooden lean-to floors and hard-pan car camping sites to soft d...

Golite Pinnacle PackMy wife borrowed my daughter's new woman's Golite Pinnacle pack for our 4-day trip down the Grand Canyon (mid-Nov 2009). She was very happy with it, and found it perfectly comfortable for our...

Coleman Customer ServiceTurned on my Coleman Powermax Exponent Xtreme and the knob did nothing. Discovered the valve was stuck and the spline threads on the knob got stripped. Removed the knob, freed the stuck valve, opene...

GoLite GoLite customer serviceThe seam tape on a Golite waterproof/breathable jacket started lifting off after a few uses. Sent it back and they quickly offered a free replacement. Alternatively, they offered a credit equal to t...